The Ancients

What lurks under the surface of the dense black peat pits strewn across northern Europe? Bog bodies, naturally mummified humans, have fascinated archeologists for decades as they offer unique insights into ancient cultures. Tristan Hughes is joined by Professor Melanie Giles to examine how old these bodies are, how they're preserved and incredible examples including Tolland Man and Lindow Man. The...

He's known as Rome’s philosopher-emperor and faced plague, rebellion and war in the East. Yet Marcus Aurelius ruled with a pen as much as a sword, finding peace in philosophy which still inspires the world today. In this episode of The Ancients , Tristan Hughes is joined by Professor William Stephens to uncover the life, legacy, and stoic philosophy of Marcus Aurelius. From his rise to emperor at...

The year is 453 AD. The most feared warlord in Europe - Attila the Hun - lies dead on his wedding night. But what happened next plunged his vast empire into bloody chaos. In this episode of The Ancients , Tristan Hughes is joined by Professor Hyun Jin Kim to uncover the dramatic story of Attila’s heirs and the fall of the Huns. From bitter rivalries between Attila’s sons to the Gothic kings who ro...

In the 7th century, a new empire rose from the sands of Arabia - united by faith, driven by conquest, and destined to change history forever. In this episode of The Ancients , Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr Khododad Rezakhani to explore the emergence of Islam from the ashes of Rome and Persia’s great struggle for supremacy. Together they discover how the early Islamic polity took shape, why the Ar...

Tristan Hughes goes on an exploration of Hawaii's earliest settlers, guided by the insights of Dr. Patrick Kirch, a leading expert on Hawaiian archeology. From the arrival of Polynesians around AD 1000, using sophisticated double-hull canoes, to their unique agricultural practices and the construction of monumental architecture, they delve into the impact of Polynesian settlers on Hawaii's pristin...

The Colosseum packed with roaring crowds, the sand stained with sweat and blood. But today, you’re not watching - you’re fighting. Welcome to a day in the life of a Roman gladiator. In this episode of The Ancients, Tristan Hughes is joined by historian and author Dr Harry Sidebottom to uncover the brutal reality behind Rome’s most iconic fighters. From their training regimes and daily routines to...

From Cinderella to Beauty and the Beast, the roots of fairy tales stretch back thousands of years — to the dawn of Indo-European languages and beyond. In this episode of The Ancients , Tristan Hughes is joined by author and journalist Laura Spinney to explore the origins of mythology. From the tales compiles by the Brothers Grimm to cutting-edge linguistic studies, they explore how ancient myths e...

Unveiling the Enigmatic Story of Egypt's First Pharaohs, roughly 5,000 years ago. Tristan Hughes is joined by Professor Aidan Dodson to discuss the renowned Scorpion King and early dynasties, the unifying figure of Narmer, as well as the evolution of early Egyptian tombs and traditions, providing a fascinating insight into the dawn of Egypt's earliest civilisations. MORE Origins of the Egyptian Go...

Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr. Kate Lister to take us on a journey through the fascinating history of Innana, an ancient goddess of love, war, fertility, and political power. They delve into her evolution from a humble agricultural deity to one of the most powerful and complex figures in ancient mythology, revered in Mesopotamia and beyond. This one goddess influenced millennia of religious and c...

Tristan Hughes journeys up to windswept Scotland to uncover the secrets of the Picts — fierce warriors, skilled artisans, enemies of Rome and rulers of the North. In this special episode of The Ancients - recorded on site at East Lomond hill fort and National Museums Scotland - Tristan is joined by Professor Gordon Noble and Dr. Martin Goldberg explores how the Picts lived, fought, and thrived in...

It was the biggest mass extinction event in Earth’s history. 250 million years ago, a 252 million years ago, Earth faced its deadliest crisis. 97% of all life was wiped out in the Permian Extinction – a cataclysm so severe it’s known as The Great Dying. In this episode of The Ancients , the fourth and final part of our Great Disasters miniseries, Tristan Hughes is joined by Professor Michael Bento...

Was this the worst year in human history? Bubonic plague sweeps across the Mediterranean. The sun vanishes behind volcanic ash. Crops fail, famine bites, and the Roman empire lurches towards collapse. In this episode of The Ancients , the third in our special Great Disasters series, Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr Kyle Harper to uncover the perfect storm of catastrophe that struck the Roman world i...

Tristan Hughes continues our special series on Great Disasters, journeying back to ancient Mesopotamia with Dr Paul Collins to explore the fall of the Sumerians. 4,000 years ago, the great cities of Sumer — Ur, Uruk, Lagash, Girsu — stood as glittering centres of power, crowned with mighty ziggurats and ruled by ambitious dynasties. Yet within a few generations, this world of splendour and traditi...

More than 3,500 years ago, a massive volcanic eruption devastated Thera - modern day Santorini - engulfing the Bronze Age world in ash and fire. Entire landscapes were buried, ash darkened the skies, and the shockwaves rippled across the eastern Mediterranean. In this episode of The Ancients, the first in our new special series on Great Disasters, Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr Steve Kershaw to un...

Professor Mary Beard and Charlotte Higgins join Tristan in this episode all about Greece and Rome - the two greatest civilisations of classical antiquity. How did the Romans borrow, adapt, and sometimes rival Greek culture? What did they admire and what did they reject? From temples and theatre to politics and philosophy, join us as two of the UK’s most celebrated classicists explore the cultural...

More than 5,000 years ago, in what is today southern Iraq, one of the world’s first civilisations emerged. A civilisation often credited with the invention of writing, the wheel and cities. The Sumerians.  The Sumerians are a people that you have probably heard of, but might not know too much about. And in today’s episode of The Ancients, we are re-releasing our episode from a few years back...

Tristan Hughes sits down with Professor Eric Cline to explore the enigmatic Sea Peoples, often blamed for the catastrophic Bronze Age collapse over 3,000 years ago. Together they explore surviving sources from ancient Egypt to find out who the Sea Peoples were, and how they swept into Egypt. They discuss the diverse groups that comprised these invaders, and question whether they were truly the pri...

Where do we come from? The origins of modern humans stretch back hundreds of thousands of years, and new discoveries are reshaping how we understand our species’ story.  In this episode, recorded on location at London’s Natural History Museum, Tristan Hughes speaks with Professor Chris Stringer, one of the world’s leading paleoanthropologists. Together they explore fossil evidence, our geneti...

Known as the 'King of the World' and the last great king of Assyria, Ashurbanipal bestrode the ancient Mesopotamian world as a warrior but also a scholar, ruling the great Assyrian empire at the height of its power. In this episode, Tristan Hughes is joined by Assyriologist Dr Selena Wisnom to uncover the dual legacy of this fearsome conqueror and passionate intellectual. From brutal military triu...

The Huns weren’t just Attila’s warriors in Europe — in Central Asia, the White Huns built the most powerful Hunnic empire, ruling for a century and dominating the ancient Silk Roads. While the European Huns fought Rome, the White Huns commanded trade routes, overthrew kingdoms, and waged relentless campaigns across Central and South Asia. Their influence reached from Persia to India, transforming...

How did Roman aqueducts help build an empire? They’re some of the most iconic structures from the ancient world — feats of engineering that transformed cities. But how exactly did Roman aqueducts work, and why were they so revolutionary? Join Tristan Hughes and Dr Duncan Keenan-Jones as they explore the rise and reach of Roman aqueducts. From mountain springs to city fountains, discover how these...

From towering tenements to Punic porridge — step into the streets of ancient Carthage. In this immersive episode of The Ancients, Tristan travels back to 210 BC to explore daily life in the heart of one of the ancient world’s richest and most vibrant cities. Joined by Dr Eve MacDonald, together they uncover what it took to survive in Carthage before its fall — from bustling markets to religious ri...

Iconic monumental stone heads, the intriguing Lord of Las Limas, the enigmatic 'were-jaguar' figures, so much survives from the ancient Olmec civilisation. Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr. Jillian Mollenhauer to unravel the Olmec's sophisticated artistry, the symbolic significance of greenstone, and the blend of naturalistic and supernatural portrayals in their work. They discuss how the Olmec set...

Powerful, cunning, uncompromising, even murderous (allegedly)... meet Rome’s first empress and one of ancient history’s ultimate power players. Livia Drusilla has long been cast as the bloodthirsty matriarch of the early Roman Empire — wife of Augustus, mother of Tiberius, and alleged poisoner of rivals. But how much of this infamous image is fact and how much is fantasy? In this episode, Tristan...

In this special episode of the Ancients, released just hours after the embargo on new research was lifted, Tristan Hughes discusses the fascinating discovery of ancient Siberian ice mummies and their tattoos with Dr Gino Caspari, the senior author of the study. The Iron Age Pazyryk culture, renowned for their elaborate burials in the Altai Mountains, is explored through their well-preserved remain...